Like any other sport, baton twirling comes with a dictionary of terms that needs to be memorized in order to understand. Luckily, we’ve get your go-to guide for mastering the terms! Let’s start with the parts of the baton: ball, tip, and shaft. The ball is the larger end of the baton, while the tip is the smaller end. The shaft is the metal middle of the baton. Then, there are the positions of the baton and body. Common ones include: cradle, free hand, salute, at ease, and attention. When you cradle the baton, you’re laying it from your hand up to your elbow. Your free hand is, as you would imagine, your hand without the baton. A salute is when your left hand is on your hip and the baton is perpendicular to the food with your right hand at your shoulder. When you’re at ease, your feet are in second position with your baton resting either behind your back or at your leg. When you’re standing at attention, your feet are in parallel first with the baton in cradle position. Your free hand should be on your hip. Finally, there are some basic twirl terms! We’re going to focus on a few: horizontals, verticals, flourishes, and spins. Horizontals are flat spins in one hand, with the ball moving over the arm and the tip underneath. Verticals are waist twirls where the ball stays on one side of the arm and the tip on the other. Flourishes, also called flashes, is the prep done before a trick, pull up head scratcher, or behind back. Finally, spins are a turn done while your baton is in the air. Now that you have all the basics down, you’re ready to start twirling! For more information, check out our blog.

Posted: 10/18/2018